Mr. Piren and I donate to our local food bank via our fire station, which collects donations and delivers to the food bank. I admit, I also donate at the fire station because I get to ogle the firefighters. Sorry, honey.
Jump below the orange cheese doodle for more.
The firefighters were delighted with my donation. One of them confided that if the shutdown continues, furloughed government employees, seniors whose social security is delayed, and others impacted will overwhelm the already struggling food banks and leave the shelves bare.
What can you do? Go through your pantry for non-perishable food items to donate. It may be difficult as so many are unemployed, employed but under the poverty line, depend on SNAP but need to use food banks to supplement their SNAP benefits and so on. Please check the use-by dates on the cans. Many well-meaning people donate expired foods which the banks cannot use. Some take produce.
I went through my pantry, and I was appalled by how many canned foods we had that were expired. We keep a separate supply of food for emergencies and natural disasters. Shame on me for not rotating when so many people are hungry.
If you can afford to buy a few items, look for high protein, healthy foods. Maybe a box of noodles or horrid orange mac and cheese for the kids. Maybe a toy are two. Also, pet food is welcome. A single food item will help.
Oh, by the way, check with your local fire department to see if they collect food for the banks. As a bonus, if you are so inclined, you get to check out the firefighters.
Thanks for reading, and if you are impacted by this stupid shutdown, our thoughts are with you.
Please check my tags and change if needed.